Brassiere



Jfine 2, 1959 I 'r. B. SCHAUMER 2,388,931

BRASSIERE Filed NOV. 5, 1956 I fialeo IN V EN TOR. .7220 .8, Say/90414.2

BY 5% W, MM

United StatesPatent 2,888,931 BRASSIER'E Theo B. Schaumer, Los Angeles,Calif, assignor, by mesne assignments, to Munsin'gwear, Inc.,Minneapolis, Minn., a corporation of Delaware Application November 5,1956, Serial No. 620,390 3 Claims. (Cl. 128-482) This invention relatesto brassieres.

When articles of clothing having low-cut backs, such as evening gowns,are worn, the rear portion of the body encircling band of the brassieremay be revealed. The width of the band may be reduced at the back at thesacrifice of peripheral strength. Hence, prior brassieres utilize strapswhich may be concealed by straps provided on the gown to provideappropriate support for the brassiere. However, such brassiere strapscannot be used in connection with garments that are strapless as .wellas backless. a

In my copending application, Serial No. 612,645, filed September 28,1956, and entitled Brassiere, there is disclosed a strapless, low-cutbrassiere that utilizes a U-shaped wire reinforcing member at thelow-cut back to impart suitable circumferential strength.

" One of the objects. of this invention isto provide a strapless,low-cut brassiere of the general type described in my prior application,but that, in a novel manner, obviates the use of wire reinforcement.

Another object of this invention is to provide a novel brassierestructure that maintains the inclined top edges of the brassiere onopposite sides of the back, as well i is situated sufiiciently low asnot to be revealed .by a

'backless garment. The respectivestrips are substantially aligned withthe upper inclined edges of the brassiere on opposite sides of the back,and pull these edges firmly against the wearers body.

Vertical stays provide appropriate anchors for the strips, and preventthe brassiere from crushing or twisting. So far as body encirclingfunctions are concerned, those produced by the crossed strips act toprovide comvponents of forces at the back directed circumferentially atthe level of the brassiere cups.

Yet another object of this invention is to provide an improvedconstruction that avoids localized stresses upon .the material of thebrassiere. arrangement of parts ensures that the strips act directly.upon the stays, and thus indirectly upon the brassiere -material.

For this purpose, a novel Still another object of this invention is toprovide an improved brassiere of this character that can economically bemanufactured.

This invention possesses many other advantages, and has other objectswhich may be made more clearly apparent from a consideration of oneembodiment of the invention. For this purpose, there is shown a form .inthe drawings accompanying and forming a part of the presentspecification. This form will now be described in detail, illustratingthe general principles of the invention; but it is to be understood thatthis detailed description is not to be taken in a limiting sense, sincethe scope of this invention is best defined by the appended (claims.

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Referring to the drawings: v

Figure 1 is a pictorial view showing the front of a brassiereinpositionon the wearer;

Fig. 2 is a pictorial view showing the rear portion of the brassiere;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary elevation of the brassiere as seen from theinside thereof; and

Fig. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view taken along the planeindicated by line 44 of Fig. 3.

The brassiere 10, in the present instance, is of the torso type, namely,one in which the body encircling elements of the brassiere extend alittle below. the waistline of the wearer. However, the brassiere may bemade even longer or slightly shorter.

The body encircling elements of the brassiere v10 comprise, in thisinstance, nine verticallyexte'nding panels having overlapping lateraledges sewn together.

The ends of the body encircling band-formed by the panels are locatedbetween the cups 13 and 13a at the front of the wearer. The opposedvertical edges 17 and 18 formed at the end panels 11 and 11a aredetachably joined by a series of hooks 19 sewn along one of the edges 17and a series of eyes (not shown) sewn along the other edge 18. Othertypes of suitable fastening means may be used in lieu of hooks and eyes.

The panel 12, together with the end panel 11 to which it is joined,provides an arcuate upper edge 9 to which the lower portion of thebreast cup 12 is secured. The panel 12a for the opposite symmetricalside of the brassiere and the end panel 11a similarly provide an arcuateupper edge. These arcuate edges, in this instance, intersect the endedges 17 and 18 of the panls 11 at a place located at the hollow belowthe breasts, and beneath the median horizontal plane passing through thecup. Supplemental detachable fastening means 20 hold the opposed upperportions of the breast cups against separating movement. 7

The front panelsv 11, 12, 11a and 12a are preferably of inelasticmaterial, such as lace, broadcloth, silk, or the like.

Each symmetrical half of the brassiere has two side panels 14, 15, or14a, 15a. The corresponding panels 14 and 14a for each half are madepreferably of twoway stretch elastic net material, and the othercorresponding side panels 15 and 15a are made of material simil to thatof the front panels 11, 12, 11a, 12a.

A common back panel 16 is secured to the edges of the side panels 15 and15a. This may also be made of two-way stretch elastic net material.

The upper edges 21 and 22 of the brassiere extending along the sides andthe back of the garment slope down- Wardly to an apex 23 located at thecenter of the wearers back at a level somewhat below that of the loweredges of the breast cups. This provides an appropriate configuration sothat the brassiere will not be revealed when straps at the upper back ofthe brassiere for holding the cups against the wearers body, other meansare provided.

For this purpose, two oblique or inclined crossed, wide elastic strips25 and 26 are providedon the inside of the garment. The lower end of thestrip 25 is secured at one side of the back panel 16 substantiallybeneath the top edge 21. The strip 25 inclines upwardly and extendsdiagonally across the back panel 16 and,.the side panel and 16 together.

15a, generally paralleling the edge 22. The upper end of this strip issecured at the seam between the side panels 15:: and 14a immediatelybeneath the corresponding top edge 22.

The .other strip 26 is similarly but symmetricallyilocated, and issubstantially parallel to the other top edge 21. It crosses strip 25 atthe central portion of the panel 16 beneath the apex 23. The strips areunattached at the place of crossing. The lower portions of the stripsbeneath the place of crossing are shorter than the upper portions.

In the unflexed condition of the brassiere, as shown inFig. 3, theintermediate portions of the strips 25 and 26 purposely extend slightlyabove the edges 21 and '22.

However, when the brassiere is donned, the strips-are concealed beneaththese edges. Thus, the brassiere expands more at the top than at thebottom. This is due partly to the normal tapering of the torso towardthe waistline. Furthermore, the cut of the brassiere, including a slightnormal upward divergence between the end edges 17 and 18 of thebrassiere (indicated by the angularity of the edge-17 in Fig. 3) assiststhis effect.

This increased expansion at the top causes the angle between the edges21 and 22 to increase to a greater extent than does the angle betweenthe crossed strips 25 and 26. Accordingly, the strips 25 and 26move-into substantially perfect parallelism with the edges 22 and 21,with the upper edges of the bands disposed entirely beneath, butrespectively close to the top edges 22 and 21 of the brassiere. Thus,the strips 25 and 26 are entirely concealed.

The strip 26, for example, both ends of which are firmly anchored,provides a force applied at a position adjacent the edge 21 spacedupwardly from the apex 23. The force is directed and located asindicated by the arrow 37. This force acts in substantial alignment withthe upper edge 21 and causes'this edge 21 firmly to engage the body ofthe wearer. This force has a component directed circumferentially, asindicated by the arrow 39. Since this component acts close to or at thelevel of the cup 13, the cup is drawn firmly against the body.

The opposite strip 25 provides symmetrically directed forces andcomponents on the opposite side of the brasslere.

The lower ends of the strips 25 and 26 provide upwardly directed forces.Thus, at the lower end of the strip 25, one of these forces is indicatedat the arrow 38.

-This force has a significant upward vertical component which, togetherwith'the downward vertical component of the force exerted by the upperend ofthe opposite ture between the panels and 16 and is shown in detailin Fig. 4. The stay 30 is accommodated in a pocket comprising twojuxtaposed strips of inelastic material 33 and 34 which are placed uponoverlapping edges of the 'panels 15 and 16 on the inside of thebarssiere. Two lines of stitching 35 and 36' not only secure the pocketstrips '33 and 34 together to enclose the stay 30, but also convenientlysecure the. overlapping edges of the panels 15 Before the line ofstitching 36 is provided, the lower end of the elastic strip is insertedbetween the strips 33 and 34. Accordingly, the strip 25 is caught by theline of stitching 36. Thus, longitudinal stress in the strip 25 istransmitted through the strips 33 and 34 to the stay 30. The oppositeedge of the strip .25, as well as both edges of the other strip 26, aresimilar1y.secured to thepocket element for the corresponding stays 29,31 and 32.

The inventor claims:

1. Abrassiere comprising a pair of breast cups, a unitary resilientmember adapted to encircle the body of a wearer affixed to said cups atleast along the bottom and opposite outward sides of said cups tosupport and hold said cups resiliently upon and against the body of awearer, said member including a front portion and a back portion adaptedto lie adjacent the front and back body areas respectively of a wearer,the upper edge of said member from each of said breast cups runningdownwardly toward said back portion in two continuous lines convergingto form substantially a V configuration with its apexin said backportion, a first strip of longitudinally resilient material afiixed at afirst end thereof to said member adjacent said upper edge on one side ofsaid apex, a second strip of longitudinally resilient material afiixedat a first end thereof to said member adjacent said upper edge on theother side of said apex, said first strip extending longitudinallysubstantially as a continuation of a first of said lines of said edge tosaid other side of said apex and being aflixed to said member at a pointbelow that at which said first end of said second strip is affixed, andsaid second strip extending longitudinally substantially as acontinuation of the second of said lines of said edge to said one sideof said apex and being afiixed to said member at a point below that atwhichsaid first end of said first strip is affixed, said strips beingotherwise unsecured to said member and to each other, whereby saidstrips resiliently draw said upper edge of said member against the bodyof a wearer by contracting said upper edge along its longitudinal lines.

2. A brassiere as set forth in claim 1, wherein said member has two endsin the front portion thereof carrying cooperating fastening means forsecuring the member about the body of a wearer.

3. In a strapless brassiere: a pair of breast cups having upper edgessloping downwardly toward the back of the garment and toward each otherwhen the brassiere is donned; a pair of panel means respectively fixedto the cup; each panel means having an arcuate top edge joined to thecorresponding cup edge, each cup edge having a portion extendingupwardly beyond the panel means; the panel means having upper edgesforming downwardly slanting continuations of the upper edges of thebreast cups; a pair of unitary crossed longitudinally resilient strips;the strips being permanently attached at opposite ends to the respectivepanel means; the strips being respectively aligned with the upper edgesof the panel means so that the area of crossing is at the center of theback of the garment; stays extending longitudinally of the panel means;those juxtaposed areas of the strips at the crossing being substantiallyfree of each other whereby said strips resiliently draw the upper edgesof said panel means and said cups against the body of the wearer bycontracting said upper edges along their longitudinal lines so that thebrassiere is held on the body of the wearer independently of shoulderstraps, but in a manner which permits body movements; and detachablefastening elements at the front center portion of the brassiere andhaving coopcrating parts extending adjacent the front edges of the panelmeans for securing the brassiere about the body of the wearer.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS162,580 Schandevyl Apr. 27, 1875 1,698,070 Roth Jan. 8, 1929 1,875,201Weber Aug. 30, 1932 2,034,167 Wipperman Mar. 17, 1936 2,101,604 SmutuyDec. 7, 1937 2,158,506 Kaupp May 16, 1939 2,760,199 Champagne Aug. 28,1956 FOREIGN PATENTS 580,508 Germany July 12,1933

